Valve actuator



United States Patent Lawrence A. Botkin Omaha, Nebraska 760,025

Sept. 16, 1968 Nov. 10, 1970 Fruehauf Corporation Detroit, Michigan a corporation of Michigan Inventor Appl. No. Filed Patented Assignee VALVE ACTUATOR 7 Claims, 9 Drawing Figs.

Int. Cl F16k 31/00 Field ofSearch 251/66,67, 72-74,76, 303, 313, 294; 267/154, 155; 137/72,

[56} References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,546,637 7/1925 Ernst 137/77 1,736,289 11/1929 Murr'ay.. 137/77 1,840,959 l/1932 Kraft 137/75 1,960,973 5/1934 Knight 137/65 2,665,714 1/1954 Greenwood 137/77X Primary Examiner-William F. ODea Assistant Examiner-Richard Gerard Attorney-Harness, Dickey & Pierce ABSTRACT: The valve actuator is spring operated to rotate a valve handle when the tension of the spring is released. When the actuator is locked, the handle is moved in the normal manner to operate the valve. The spring tension is released either remotely by manual means or by fusible means located adjacent to the tensioned spring and valve.

Patented Nov. 10, 1970 Sheet 2 of 2 INVENTQR. Adwrc /rac A130 /%/)1 VALVE ACTUATOR closes uh actuator which'is applied to a gate valve and not to a rotary type valve.

SUMMARY OF THE lNVENTlON The actuator has a'rotatable head containing projections which are eri'g'ageablc with those of the handle to close the valve while permitting i'tsoperation by the hahdlein the normal manner. A 'coil spring or a spring bar is tension'ed for rotating the head and is 'restrainedby a trigger device which is remotely actuated or actuated by a' spring which is retained inillustrated in FIG. l

Fit]. 3 isa sectionalview' of the structure illustrated inFlG.

7 makes 'onthe line'3-3theteof; i

FIG. MS a seetionalvieivofthe structure 2, takenon thc line 4- 4ther'eof;

' FIG. Sis 'a broken sectiohaliview of the structure illustrated illu s'tratedin FIG.

in FIG, 2,-ta ken on the lines '5 thereofwiththe valve-shown in closed position and the 'aetuating'springtensioned;

. FlGf6 is a vie w of the structure illustrated in FIG. Safter the manual operation of thevalve',

MG. 7 is a view ofthe-structureillustratcdin FIG. 6 after the actuator has heenreleusctl and-the'valvemoved -to-closc position thereby;

FlG/8 is ahrokcri'wicwof'structure, Similar to that'illus' tratedin FlG.=--2,showinganother formoftensioning spring,

and a FIG. 9 is a sectional view orthestmcture illustrated inFlG. 8, taken on theline 9-9 thereof.

' DESCRIPTION 'O THE' PREFERREDEM-BODIMENTS The valve actuatorl ldfthe' presentinv'ention is-applied to a standard butterfly'or like rotary valve l2 whi ch is'manually actuated by" a"handle 13. A baclcplate 1*4'hasa pair of forwardly projecting plates l' and l6"supported' thereby. The plate 16 hits iinaperture l7 therein for supporting a head 18 huvinga slot 19 therein which 'receives and end 21 of a coil spring 22, the head 18 being securedinposition by screws23.

The plate has an aperture 24 therein for supporting a head 25 for rotationon an -annular channel shaped bearing element 26 made'of nylon or like plastic material. The headZS-has-a slot27"whichrecei ves an end 28'at the opposite end of the spring 22. The head has a washerlike'plate -29 secured thereto by screws Lil-and provided-with a truncated conical aperture 32 which receives the tapered endof a plunger 33. The plunger is mountedin nylon or like sleeves-34 in'uprights 35 and 36 of a member 37-whi ch'is secured byscrews 23'to the plate 15. After the head 25 is locked by the plunger 33, the head 18 is turned" through approximately 360 to provide a preload to the spring 22 after which the head 18 is locked in position by the screws 23.

A cable clip 39 on the remote end of the plunger has a cable 41 connected thereto so that the plunger can be withdrawn when actuatedv from a remote point. A spring 38 abuts :the inner face of the upright 35 and a collar 42 retained in position 'on the plunger by a split spring washer 43. A washer 44 is mounted on the plunger 33 forwardly of the washer 43 having a pair of arms 45 to which fusible elements 46 are secured by screws 47 and to the sides of the upright 36. A spring 48 substnntially heavier than the spring 38 is disposed over the plunger 33 between the washer 44 and the inner face of the upright. When a fire occurs adjacent to the actuator, the fusiblc elements 46 will melt and the tension in the spring 48 will move the plunger 33 to the right withdrawing the end from the aperture 32. The plunger 33 forms a trigger device which when actuated releases the head 25 which moves the handle 13 to close the valve.

The handle 13 has a pair of spaced projections 51 thereon which are diametrically disposed as illustrated in FIGS. 5, 6 and 7. Similar projections 52 extending forwardly from the head 25,'maintained in position by fingers 53 extending into a cylindrical recess '54 on the adjacent face of the handle. When the valve is in closed position, the relationship of the projections 51 and 52 is illustrated in FIG. 5. When the handle has been moved 90 to open the valve the relationship of the pro- 'jeetion 51 and 52 is illustrated in FIG. 6. lt will be noted that the 90 movement fromopen to closed position of the handle will occur without interferencebetween the projection. When 'the handle is'in valve openposition as illustrated in FIG. 6 and the plunger 33 is retracted either bythe cable 41 or by the melting ofthe'fusible elements 46, the head 25 is released and rotated by the spring 22 to move the projections 52 from the position illustrated inFlG. 6 to that illustrated in FIG. 7. This moved'the handle to valve closed position with the projections 51 shown in'thesame position as they are in FIG. 5. and the projections 52 in abutting engagement therewith.

When the-handle isa gain moved from valve open to valve closeposition, the head 25 is moved therewith until the aperture 32becomes aligned with the plunger 33. The plunger will beurgedforwardly by the spring 38 into the aperture to lock theh'ead25 in its. retracted position. lf the fusibleelements 46 had melted'to release the plunger, new fuse elements would first'be installed to have the spring 48 retracted, as illustrated in F168. 2 and 4. The actuator is unique in that it occupies a 'smallspace and may be attached to a rotary valve without interl'cring with the normal manual operation thereof. The withdrawal of the plunger'33 remotely or by the melting of the fusible-elements' 46 releases the rotatable head 25 which returns the valve handle and the valve to close position.

'ln FIG. '8 another form of the invention is illustrated that wherein-ahead 55 is substituted'for thehead 25 and a head 56 is substituted for the head 18 of the embodiment illustrated in FlG. 2.'A spring bar'57 which may be solid or made up of leaf spring elements 58,; is secured in square apertures 59 in the heads'55 and 56 and twisted approximately 360 to provide a preload thereto. A sleeve 61 may be placed over the bar 57 secured in apertured-projections 62 at the, ends of the heads 55*and 56. The structure otherwise is the same as that illustrated and described in FIGS. 1 to 7.

lclaim: 1. In an actuator for a rotary valve, a manually actuated operating element for the valve having projections, a pair of spaced parallel supports, a spring between said supports, a

head fixedto one of said supports and secured to one end of 70;

Y valve operating element, and trigger means for retaining the rotatable head in spring tensioned position.

2. In an actuator for a rotary valve as recited in claim 1, wherein a remotely actuated cable on the trigger means permits the closing of the valve manually from a remote point, and wherein fusible means on an actuator which is moved with the trigger means when released by the cable releases the trigger means independently of said cable when the fusible means is melted.

3. In an actuator for a rotary valve as recited in claim I, wherein the spring is ofa coil type which is preloaded and into the ends ofwhich said heads extend.

4. In an actuator for a rotary valve as recited in claim I, wherein the spring is of the bar type which is twisted to provide a preload thereto when supported in said aligned heads.

5. In an actuator for a rotary valve as recited in claim I, wherein the rotatable head has an aperture and wherein the trigger means is a plunger supported on a pair of spaced uprights, a spring on the plunger, and a collar on the plunger engaged by the latter spring for urging the plunger forwardly into engagement with said aperture in the rotatable head.

6. In an actuator for a rotary valve as recited in claim 5, wherein a washer is provided forwardly of said collar on the plunger having a pair of extending arms, a spring about the plunger between the washer and the forward upright, and fusible links secured to the arms and said forward upright for maintaining said last spring compressed.

7. In an actuator for a rotary valve as recited in claim 1, wherein the valve operating element is a handle having a cylindrical recess in the face adjacent to the rotatable head, and means on the rotatable head extending within said recess for positioning the rotatable head of the actuator relative to the handle. 

